


Somewhere I have Never Travelled

by StrictlyFromCorn (orphan_account)



Series: Dancing in the Dark [6]
Category: Astaire/Rogers RPF, Fred Astaire/Ginger Rogers Movies
Genre: F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-08-01
Updated: 2014-08-01
Packaged: 2018-02-11 08:49:06
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,248
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/2061702
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/orphan_account/pseuds/StrictlyFromCorn
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Filming for Roberta is still in full swing, and Fred drags Ginger away one afternoon to show her a surprise in her dressing room. And she surprises him with something as well.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Somewhere I have Never Travelled

**Author's Note:**

> "somewhere i have never travelled,gladly beyond  
> any experience,your eyes have their silence:  
> in your most frail gesture are things which enclose me,  
> or which i cannot touch because they are too near"  
> \- E.E. Cummings.
> 
> I thought that poem suited this chapter and I want to apologize for being so slow with this again. Blah. But I hope you'll enjoy it all the same! :) I can promise you, things are going to be great for them both from here on out!

“I’ve got a surprise for you.” Fred grinned as he took his dancing partner by the hand, confidently leading her back to her dressing room. The kissing incident had taken place three days ago, and although neither of them had made any mention about it except to Hermes, it had been on their minds the whole time. The pessimistic side of Fred had suspected it would simply make things awkward between him and Ginger, but nothing of the sort had happened. 

If anything, it seemed to help their relationship. Every time he glanced at her during rehearsals, they both evidently thought of the kiss and ended up breaking into a fit of giggles. The crew members had started to comment on how much more cheerful Fred had become - he was always courteous and behaved like a gentleman, but now, there was a permanent silly grin etched onto his face.

“A surprise for me? Oh, Freddie.” Ginger chuckled his name as they walked down the hallway, almost resisting the urge to run to her dressing room so that she could see at once what Fred had got for her. There was a childlike delight in the way she had said the word “surprise”, like a little kid waiting anxiously on Christmas morning. “I love presents, but if it’s another pair of tap shoes, Fred, I’m telling you-”

“You’ll see what it is.” Fred picked up on the teasing hint in her voice and couldn’t help but smile at Ginger’s jovial attitude. She hadn’t told him much about the situation with Lew, but judging by her joyful behavior on-set, he was assured that things were all right. “ Entrez vous .” He invited as he opened the door to the dressing room, making a sweeping gesture with his hand for her to enter first.

“Thank you, kind sir.” Ginger gave him a fake, exaggerated bow before stepping into the room. At first glance, she saw nothing out of place, no giant teddy bears or big bouquets. “What is this surprise that you speak so highly of?” She turned to her dancing partner with a cocked eyebrow while he closed the door behind him.

“Right here, your Highness.” Fred poked fun at her regal attitude with that phrase, striding over to the dressing table full of makeup. He took a small red box from it, holding it in the palm of his hand. “I’d like to see you guess what’s in here.” It was rather obvious, though, given that the word “Cartier” was sewn across it.

“A… ring?” Ginger’s blue eyes were wide as she stepped forward and took the box from Fred, her mouth half-open with amazement. “Cartier, too?” The dancer’s voice squeaked in surprise and a light blush instantly dusted her cheeks from embarrassment. “Can I open it?” When Ginger’s question was met with a nod and a smile from him, she opened it quickly to reveal a beautiful ring with a large ruby attached to it. “Oh, Fred, it’s… it’s  wonderful ! It’s wonderful! I don’t know how else to say it, but—” She threw her arms around her dancing partner without thinking, absolutely stunned that anyone would get her such an expensive gift.

“I’m glad you think it’s swell.” Fred returned the hug without hesitation either, inordinately happy that his gift had been so well-received by Ginger. “I know gals love these things, and I figured I’d get you a ring with a ruby on it because it’s your birthstone, isn’t it?” He remembered all those little details about her — her favorite color, her favorite kind of flower, her favorite food,  everything , because he knew those made her happy and he wanted to make her happy, too.

“Yeah… July’s birthstone is ruby. Aw, Fred, it’s so sweet of you to get this for me. I mean, you really shouldn’t have, and I mean it honestly, because it must’ve cost so much, and… well, it’s Cartier.” Ginger mumbled, starting to think about how expensive the gift was. As a matter of fact, she believed it was even more costly than the wedding ring that Lew had bought for her.

“Don’t worry about the money. Nothing’s too expensive for you, Ginge. If I could do it, I’d get all the jewels in the world and even then it wouldn’t be enough for you. Because you’re worth all the world to me.” He stroked her blonde hair just like he had done on that day, sincerely hoping that the gift would make her feel better about any problems she had. 

It wasn’t meant to be “bait” to lure her and to show off compared to Lew — Fred was assuredly not that type. Whatever Ginger decided about him and Lew would come later. Like he had said a few days ago, they didn’t need to think about the complicated situation all at once, and so far, she had done just that. He wasn’t going to pressure her into making a monumental decision about her love life in an instant — he knew those things needed time, and he would give her as much as she needed.

“I meant what I said about the sugar donuts the other day. You’re the sweetest, Freddie.” Ginger broke away from the hug in order to try on the gift, which fit perfectly on her ring finger. She wore it on her left hand, a broad smile lighting up her face as she held it up and the ruby gleamed in the light. “I’ll never take this ring off. I’ll wear it all the time, because I treasure it so much.” Again, she wrapped her arms around her dancing partner and gave him a quick kiss on the cheek.

“Oh, Ginge.” Fred murmured her name softly and fondly, rubbing his hand over her back in a rhythmic, circular motion. “You’re wonderful.” She blinked at the statement and smiled, although she said nothing. In the silence that followed, a million different thoughts raced through her mind — the thought of kissing Fred was tempting, but at the same time, Ginger didn’t want to over-commit to anything, especially since she was still married to Lew. But, the more she thought about her marriage, the more certain she felt that she had married the wrong man.

She didn’t allow herself too much time to change her mind before she stood on her tiptoes and pressed her lips against her dancing partner’s, closing her eyes as she did so. At the same time, Fred hadn’t expected her to initiate a kiss — out of surprise, he nearly stepped backwards, but Ginger’s arms wrapping around his neck instead of his back stopped him from doing so. The dancer returned the kiss wholeheartedly, finding his large hands cradling her head and feeling the soft texture of her hair.

The only thing he knew was that he was deliriously happy. Fred could’ve thrown the dressing room door open and run outside and screamed to the skies about how he was the luckiest man in the world. He had waited for two years, and it hadn’t been in vain. The dancer had to repeatedly remind himself not to tense up his lips and make the kiss too rough in his excitement, but it was a difficult job when he felt as if he had lost all his senses and self-control.

As the lip-lock progressed, Fred became vaguely aware of the smell of Ginger’s perfume. It was a cross between vanilla, honey, and toffee; sweet, but not sickeningly or overpoweringly so. Apparently, scent created the strongest memories, and if that was so, he would always think of that beautiful moment whenever he smelled that perfume.

Her mind released itself completely into the kiss, as she decided then and there that Fred was the man for her. When they had first kissed, Ginger wasn’t thinking properly — admittedly, she had felt a bit guilty about it when she returned home, but this time was different. She had made the decision in her full mental capacity, literally and figuratively embracing the fact that she loved Fred.

Their lips broke contact when she finally stepped back, finding herself starting to run out of breath. With some reluctance, Ginger took her hands off of his neck as she brushed some of her hair out of her face, still tingling with the thrill of the kiss nevertheless. “Fred, I…”

Fred’s name had become synonymous with elegance and grace, but there was none of it when Ginger suddenly stepped backward, leaving him hanging. Rather, there was a pronounced clumsiness in the way he nearly stumbled forward in surprise. Instantly, he was overcome by a feeling of nervousness — did she think that they had gone too far? “Yeah?” The dancer desperately didn’t want it to be their last kiss, and it was reflected in his expression and shaky tone of voice.

“Fred, you know as well as I do that even if we waited a million years, Lew wouldn’t compare to you. I… I frankly think I shouldn’t have married him in the first place, now that I know that you love me, and I… love you.” At once, Ginger saw the expression of genuine happiness on Fred’s face and the corners of her mouth turned up, too. Oh, God, he loved her with all his heart, and she could see that.

“I love you, too.” His voice was choked up with all the emotion he felt, despite his best efforts to play it cool. Without any hesitation, Fred stepped forward and kissed Ginger again, pulling her as close as possible to himself. The physical kiss was executed with all the technique of a seasoned veteran, but neither of them had felt  so many  raging feelings for another person before.

Her hands ran across his back this time, feeling the smoothness of his tweed jacket. It was comforting; arousing, even, but maybe that had more to do with the intense satisfaction of the kiss. There was a bit of commotion outside the dressing room — evidently some of the kids working on another film running loose around the lot, but that did nothing at all to distract Fred and Ginger. As far as they were concerned, they were in a different world.

A wonderful world.

Neither of them wanted to think about the implications of that moment; what it would mean for her relationship with Lew, or for their future together. Not for that one moment, not when they could escape from reality so conveniently.

 

* * *

 

“Oh, and one more thing. I think we’re gonna do the “Smoke Gets in Your Eyes” dance today, Ginge. Is that all right?” Fred glanced up at his dancing partner, who was still stroking his hair fondly. She had come over to his house for breakfast, and one thing led to another, ending up with the two of them sitting on the sofa, with Fred resting his head in her lap. It was a rather comfortable position for the two of them, although he had been watching the clock so that they wouldn’t be late for filming.

“I’d love to do it.” Ginger answered with a laugh, remembering the disastrous rehearsal that had taken place on that fateful day. Since then, they’d come leaps and bounds in that dance, finally rehearsing it until they had hit the standards of absolute perfection that they had set in their earlier movies, and also, in their relationship. Ginger hadn’t said anything concrete yet, but she found that the more time she spent with Fred, the more she could feel the love falling out of her marriage to Lew. Evenings at the dinner table with her husband had lost their charm; as a matter of fact, she couldn’t help but look forward to lunch breaks with her dancing partner, where they would spend less time eating and more time teasing and playing practical jokes on each other, just like a bunch of schoolchildren.

“It’s eight-thirty. Maybe we ought to get going, huh? I mean, much as I hate to spoil the moment.” Fred unwillingly sat up, not wanting to leave, but at the same time, knowing that they had to fulfill their work obligations. Frankly, he longed for the moment when they’d be able to go home together as well with no objections — when they’d be  married . It was perhaps an impossibly crazy goal after just two kisses, and given her relationship with Lew, but he honestly believed Ginger could be the girl with whom he would spend the rest of his life.

“Of course, of course. Mr. A is never late to set,  never .” She responded teasingly, rising from her seat and referring to him by the nickname that the crew members had coined for him. Ginger wasn’t sure where they’d come up with that name, but it was one she liked all the same. The crew members also referred to her as “Miss R”, and Hermes liked to call them that sometimes, jokingly, of course.

The choreographer had reminded Fred on several occasions to be wary about the relationship, but the sight of Fred and Ginger, hand-in-hand, smiling at each other like schoolchildren, was something that cheered him up like few other things did. He was glad to see his friend so happy — after seeing him mope around for so long.

“No, he isn’t, and he’s not about to let Miss R get into that habit, either.” Fred held out a hand for his dancing partner to hold as they made their way outside to the car.


End file.
